WELKOM – The Matjhabeng Local Municipality finds itself in administrative chaos, teetering precariously on the brink of complete collapse with no permanent accounting officer to navigate the institution through its mounting challenges.
Leadership vacuum deepens
Following Advocate Lonwabo Ngoqo’s abrupt departure in September 2024, the municipality has remained without stable leadership, despite a succession of interim appointments that have failed to provide institutional stability.
Thabo Panyani served in an acting capacity for ten months before his tenure was terminated due to the absence of concurrence from the MEC of the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) to approve an extension beyond the statutory 90-day period. Advocate Lauretta van Wyk subsequently assumed the role from August to October this year.
The municipal manager position remains conspicuously vacant following recent ANC caucus and council proceedings, where the majority of councillors rejected Executive Mayor Thanduxolo Khalipha’s nomination of Khathatso Tlhakudi. According to ANC councillors, they vehemently opposed the appointment despite Khalipha’s assertion that the ANC deployment committee had sanctioned the nomination. The leadership ultimately withdrew the proposal.
Administrative paralysis
The municipality currently operates without an acting municipal manager, as Van Wyk’s appointment has lapsed without council extension. Last week, the institution was left in complete administrative paralysis through collective senior management absenteeism. Van Wyk was on sick leave whilst Dr Vuyo Adonis, Executive Director of Corporate Services, Jonathan Ntsabo, Executive Director of Infrastructure, and Thabo Panyani were all simultaneously on leave, rendering Matjhabeng a rudderless vessel adrift in turbulent waters.
Toxic working environment
Employees, union representatives, and executive management have raised persistent complaints regarding alleged bullying and harassment by Khalipha, creating what sources describe as a toxic working environment that has triggered significant increases in sick leave applications and staff resignations.
Vista has obtained correspondence from union representatives addressed to Van Wyk, expressing concerns about the alleged assault of union members within the mayoral boardroom.
Comprehensive corruption allegations
In a damning 33-point interrogation letter addressed to Khalipha, prominent ANC Free State Legislature member Oupa Khoabane has raised serious questions regarding alleged corrupt activities following a 4 November meeting of the joint committee on public accounts and cooperative governance.
Khoabane specifically queried whether comprehensive investigations had been commissioned into the litigation controversy, where millions of rand were allegedly diverted to a Gauteng legal firm, and the appointment of what he termed an “irregular rogue unit” within the Public Safety Department.
Property and financial irregularities
The correspondence questions whether Khalipha has declared all directorships in construction companies and whether such businesses conduct municipal work. Particular attention is drawn to Khalipha’s alleged ownership of two Riebeeckstad properties—one reportedly constructed by a municipal service provider in Gluckman Drive, another in Bellevue Street.
Additional concerns include missing mayoral chains valued at millions of rand, copper doors allegedly removed from the Civic Centre, the purported purchase of a BMW vehicle for the mayor’s personal assistant, and approximately R1 million allegedly spent on furniture and electronics for various private residences using municipal funds.
Intimidation allegations
The letter addresses claims that employees fear reporting irregularities following Khalipha’s alleged statements during mayoral committee meetings that he maintains contacts within special investigation units, police services, and the Hawks who provide intelligence on individuals reporting corruption.
Systemic financial misconduct
The 33 questions encompass broader financial irregularities, including R3 million in salaries allegedly paid into fictitious accounts in 2020, R30 million reportedly missing from municipal investments made in 2019, and R3 million allegedly transferred to a fictitious Lesotho account in 2016.
Seeking administrative salvation
Municipal employees have expressed cautious optimism that administrative recommendations will be implemented without political interference, prioritising the interests of Matjhabeng citizens as the municipality desperately seeks stability amid mounting allegations of systemic corruption and comprehensive governance failures.
The situation represents one of the most serious administrative crises faced by a South African municipality in recent memory, with implications extending far beyond local governance into questions of accountability and public trust in democratic institutions.
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